Barcelona have reportedly agreed to the sale of French defender Samuel Umtiti to Olympique Lyon, seven years after joining from the same side.
According to Sports Zone (via Sport), Barcelona and Lyon have agreed to a €4m deal for Umtiti this summer, plus a percentage of any future sale. Umtiti has spent the past season on loan at Lecce, not only getting back his match sharpness in Serie A but also rebuilding his reputation after several seasons without game time in Barcelona.
However Lyon will not pull the trigger on the deal until they sell Caston Lukeba. The 20-year-old central defender is on the market, and Lyon hope to bring in upwards of €20m for him. They are currently in negotiations, but no deal has been reached.
Provided that sale is made, Lyon will supposedly sanction a move for Umtiti. The 29-year-old was linked with a return to his first club last summer, but a deal was called off due to doubts about his fitness.
Umtiti was hailed as one of the better defenders in Serie A last season, and looks as if he is getting his career back on track. If Lyon do get a similar version of ‘Big Sam’, then that price tag will look very cheap. Equally for Barcelona, they are in desperate need of income and the time has come for a relationship that soured some time ago to an end.
